Letters to the Editor:
I’ll admit I do not read the Citizen but then don’t read the Journal either, However, since an article in a recent Citizen referring to me by name was called to my attention by a friend I decided it would be a good idea to read it. In response to the suggestion or accusation there was collusion between my letters to the editor of the FCN and any other writer’s letter is ridiculous. Certainly it is not difficult to understand why what happened at the administrative hearing would not elicit protest letters by individual St. Charles City residents.
It has been and will continue to be my hope that my letters express the feelings of many and the fact they saw fit to single me out by name in an accusatory fashion would indicate the letters ARE effective. Believe me, I will continue to write when the occasion presents itself and I feel an occasion coming up very soon.
They indicated I (we) had some sort of advance knowledge of the administrative hearing since our letters appeared only a day or two later. The marvel of the electronic age permitted me to watch the hearings on television, write my letter and with my own fax send it along to the First Capitol News the morning after the hearing, Since I was leaving town for a weeks vacation the next morning it was important for me to act quickly. No advance knowledge of what was going to happen at the hearing was given to me.
Carol Diller
Dear Editor,
In response to the comments regarding the recent Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast in St. Charles, we would like to mention several items that may be of hope and healing to the community.
From its very inception, our country has built its foundational principles on our abiding passion for freedom. It has been one of the very pillars of our society. The free exercise of conscience, provided that conscience does not infringe on the rights and liberties of others, is gratefully upheld. The freedom of worship falls in that category, and it is upon that subject that we wish to make a few remarks.
St. Charles County has long been a rather homogonous community. But in recent years we have been witnesses of a remarkable “westward expansion” as significant numbers of people have moved out here from St. Louis county and elsewhere. The increase in population has also brought an increase of diversity. In addition to cultural and ethnic diversity, peoples of varying faiths now make St. Charles County their home, bringing fresh values, vitality and perspectives with them.
The Interfaith Partnership of St. Charles County, (working under the Interfaith Partnership of St. Louis), welcomes those of all faiths. Our mission is to promote peace, respect and understanding among people of all faiths. We promote unity, respect, dignity, and peace through regular dialogue groups, community service, and celebrations of faith. While holding dear the tenants of our own particular faith, we reach out to those who believe differently than ourselves in a spirit of friendship and mutual understanding. To those of all faiths, we would like to say – thank you for making St. Charles County your home. All are welcome here. All are safe here. We are among friends.
We encourage the community of St. Charles County to continue to show respect and dignity to those of all faiths. This is one of the greatest freedoms that our country stands for, and we are grateful heirs to those who sacrificed much so that we may enjoy that freedom today.
For more information about the Interfaith Partnership of St. Charles County, please contact Beth Rodriquez, Project Coordinator of Interfaith Partnership, at bdrodriguez@interfaithpartnership.org
Deborah Coffey, Chairman
St. Charles Chapter of
Interfaith Partnership of St. Louis
Dear Editor:
A group of St. Charles citizens has been circulating a petition for the Recall of Mayor York. Since we are now shifting into high gear, I feel it is time to clear up some misconceptions regarding the recall process. There are no millionaires behind our effort, only plain, ordinary ST. CHARLES citizens. In circulating this petition I have heard many comments from citizens, which indicate a lack of understanding regarding the recall process. The editor of the Mayor’s paper considers our recall activity as an Attack On The Office Of The Mayor. We are not attacking the OFFICE of the Mayor; we are protecting that office from abuse.
Recall is an electoral process, just as much an electoral process as the process, which put the official in office. A recall petition does not remove anyone from office. It is simply a sampling of public opinion to determine whether there is enough public interest to justify a recall election. The petition, when successful, simply puts the matter to a vote. You, the entire St. Charles City electorate, then decide whether to recall or not recall. This is grass roots democracy. If a majority of the voting citizens of St. Charles are sufficiently dissatisfied with their current mayor, then we have not only the right but also the duty to do something about it. If the majority of St. Charles citizens are favorable toward their mayor then she has nothing to worry about, the mechanism of mayoral recall is spelled out in the Charter. Our Charter specifies, “Any official elected by popular vote may be removed by the voters qualified to vote for the official’s successor except as hereinafter provided, such power to be known as recall,” An official may not be recalled during their first six months in office, nor during the last three months of their term. The Charter states, “A recall petition shall be signed by qualified REGISTERED voters qualified to vote for the official’s successor equal to twenty percent of the total number of qualified registered voters registered to vote in the last regular city election.”
When a sufficient number of valid signatures is achieved he City Council sets a date for holding a recall election. If a majority of qualified registered voters voting in the recall election shall vote in favor of recall, then a vacancy in the office shall be declared. An election must be held within thirty days after that for the purpose of electing a new Mayor. Between the time of the vacancy and the installation of a new Mayor the City Council president shall act as Mayor.
Join our fight and help take back our city.
Glen L. Dashner
Letters to the Editor:
I’ll admit I do not read the Citizen but then don’t read the Journal either, However, since an article in a recent Citizen referring to me by name was called to my attention by a friend I decided it would be a good idea to read it. In response to the suggestion or accusation three was collusion between my letters to the editor of the FCN and any other writer’s letter is ridiculous. Certainly it is not difficult to understand why what happened at the administrative hearing would not elicit protest letters by individual St. Charles City residents.
It has been and will continue to be my hope that m y letters express the feelings of many and the fact they saw fit to single me out by name in an accusatory fashion would indicate the letters ARE effective. Believe me, I will continue to write when the occasion presents itself and I feel an occasion coming up very soon.
They indicated I (we) had some sort of advance knowledge of the administrative hearing since our letters appeared only a day or two later. The marvel of the electronic age permitted me to watch the hearings on television, write my letter and with my own fax send it along to the First Capitol News the morning after the hearing, Since I was leaving town for a weeks vacation the next morning it was important for me to act quickly. No advance knowledge of what was going to happen at the hearing was given to me.
Carol Diller
Dear Editor:
“Mr., O’Connor (previous City Administrator) came to work each day with a positive attitude and a huge Irish smile,” said former Director of Human resources for the City of St. Charles, Carrie Caskey. He actually spent his tenure in St. Charles seeking other employment.
Come on Carrie; somebody ought to explain to you what a “Con-man” is if you aren’t one yourself and are so naïve.
Why did you fail to explain what you, this possible con man, and our Mayor attempted to do to this city during Mr. O’Connor’s last few months on the job concerning our police department?
I am referring to the “lock step six,’ Baum, Riggs, Kneemiller, Muensch, Gould and Nieland, plus our Mayor, O’Connor with the Irish smile, and you Carrie. Together you put officer Corley in as interim police chief on the advice of Officer Tommy Mayer, head of the Fraternal Order of Police for the State of Missouri.
In addition, your little group gave the take-home cars back to the officers who choose not to live in this city, as well as the 200 hours pay to officer Mayer for doing union work at the expense of the taxpayers.
Also Ms. Caskey, did you forget about the $40,000 you and Mr. Corley cost the taxpayers with your leather purchases that after they were purchased it was discovered that the weapons would not fit in them?”
Also Ms. Caskey, do you remember the little private ceremony where you and the Mayor pinned the Colonel insignia on interim Chief Corley? Then you paid him full pay as if he were the permanent chief. For six months, the taxpayers paid for two full-time chiefs. Wasn’t it the Mayor who requested Chief Police Corbin to retire six-months early? Why did she do that?
It was Carrie Caskey’s bright idea for the out –of-town, politically active, police chief’s association to come to town and select the new chief for the City of St. Charles. That would have been a sure way to see that Corley received the nod. Our new City Council balked at this as well they should have.
Mr. Bob Lowery, assistant police chief in Florissant, was selected as the most qualified to be our next police chief. It seems that Mayor Patti decided that Lowery just, “Did not fit” the Mayor’s personal agenda. She refused to accept him.
The City Council attempted to correct a flaw in the charter by placing an amendment on the ballot to end the stalemate. This would have given the majority of the Council the authority to override the Mayor.
The CFRG, Committee for Responsible Government teamed with St. Chuck, Officers of the Chamber of Commerce, Elmendorf, T.R. Hughes, and Mayor Patti, etc. to spend a fortune and defeat the charter amendment. We were back to square one in our quest for anew chief.
Last but least, the advertising PR man Jamboretz (Jamby), was hired to spearhead the defeat of the amendment, Jamby, you’re real good at what you do. Save our Mayor? You keep on jammin, jammin, and jammin! You go, PR man. You go! One of our police officers told me that you were as useless as a clothesline in a nudist camp. Go, man go!
Regarding the Mayor’s Defense Fund – The truth does not decompose no matter how long it is covered up; it’s always still there.
These are Honest Issues, fat cat Ed. What actions do you suggest?
An old timer told me long ago – “There is always a way to skin a cat, especially a fat cat who thinks in his own mind and his alone that he has nine lives.
Bob Breidentsteiner
An Open Letter To Council Members
Have you EVER gone by the NEW police station and courts building on a week end?
If not I believe you might take note to the accumulation of DAILY NEWSPAPERS that accumulate on the South side of the building.
Does the Post Dispatch furnish these papers at No CHARGE ?????
IF THEY DON'T I PERSONALLY THINK IT IS HIGH TIME TO DISCONTINUE THE WEEK END DELIVERY. All it takes is a telephone call. Just how many papers ARE really needed there DAILY ?? I know that the amount is minimal, considering the St. Charles Budget.
But I was always told " a penny saved is a penny earned "
It sure would be appreciated that any of you receiving this, would AT LEAST acknowledge.
God Bless
Lee Roy
